It is simply said to those who have an issue with Imam Ad Daarimi saying If allah willed he could’ve rode the back of a mosquito, which would mean he would be above it similar to juloos, not that he is riding it like creation would ride a horse or camel, allah ﷻ’s are exalted above ours.
The point the Imam is making here is that Allah ﷻ doesn’t depend on angels to carry on the throne for him to be upon it, rather it is by his power that the angels carry the throne, just like it is within his power to be ontop of a mosquito yet it is so tiny, this would be within his capability.
This isn’t an affirmation that he is doing so but saying it’s possible that he could be above the throne the same way he could be above the mosquito isn’t an issue, but if this was to be the case then the mosquito would be in the place of the throne (highest place of creation) as it is impossible for Allah ﷻ to be inside creation, and this is clear cut kufr.
Imam Ad Daarimi ridicules the belief that istawa (rose over) means istawla (took control) and says that if it meant took control, then it would imply that Allah was not already in control before, which is impossible because no one has ever fought Allah for His Throne for Him to have to take control over it.
He also refutes those who try to measure Allah in terms of size, saying that Allah is greater than everything. The Throne and those who carry it do not hold it up by their own strength but only by Allah’s power.
The statement about Allah being able to settle upon a mosquito is to show that Allah does not need a large Throne to be above it. If He wanted, He could settle on something as small as a mosquito, and it would hold Him up by His power. So it makes no sense to deny that the Throne, which is much greater, could carry Him.
Translation: The opponent claimed that some people said regarding the verse (wa istawa ‘ala al-‘arsh) (and He rose over the Throne) that it means istawla (took control). He said that some of them said: “He took control over it,” meaning He is above it. It is said about a man that he is ‘ala al-shay’ (over something), meaning he owns it and it has come under his power, just as it is said that someone ghalaba ‘ala madinah (took over a city) and then istawa ‘ala amriha (established control over it), meaning he took possession of it and did not mean sitting. These are possible interpretations.
To this opponent, the lost and ruined one who speaks nonsense without knowing, it is said: These are interpretations that may seem possible in meaning, but in reality, they are the worst of misguidance and the most foolish of falsehoods. Only the ignorant or those deeply stuck in misguidance interpret them this way.
Woe to you! Is there anything in your claim that Allah has not taken control over and is not above, such that He would specify the Throne alone among what is in the heavens and the earth? Do you know of even the weight of a speck in the heavens and the earth that is not owned by Allah and not under His rule, so that He would need to specify the Throne alone with taking control? Has any of His creation opposed Him or fought Him over His Throne, forcing Him to overcome them and then establish control over it through struggle and force, just as you claimed by comparing this to someone who takes over a city through conflict and then controls it?
In your claim, you have left no safety for Allah from being overpowered, because the one who struggles to take control may sometimes win and sometimes lose. Has anyone ever heard of someone more ignorant of Allah than one who claims that Allah took control over His Throne through struggle and then compares Him to a conqueror? He says: “Do you not see that a man is said to have taken over a city and established control over its people?” How can you claim that no one is allowed to liken Allah to creation or imagine something about Him that is found in creation, yet you liken Him to a conqueror who takes over a city through force?
If your mother had given birth to you deaf and mute, it would have been better for you than making such an interpretation about Allah and His Throne.
Stop, O weak person! You will not push away the Throne and the Kursi (Footstool) with such foolish talk, false beliefs, and blindness, because belief in them has reached everyone who knows Allah, whether a scholar or an ignorant person.
What is even more astonishing is that you measure Allah’s existence using the size, weight, and smallness or largeness of the Throne. You claim like blind children that if Allah is smaller than the Throne, then you have made the Throne greater than Him. If He is bigger than the Throne, then you claim that He has a size greater than the Throne. If He is equal to it, then when the heavens and the earth are added to the Throne, they would be bigger than Him.
You have spoken nonsense, made useless statements, and misled others with false beliefs. If Allah wanted, He would cut out your tongue. What a disgrace for a people whose scholar is like this and who look up to him despite all this confusion and ignorance!
To this arrogant, boastful man, it is said: Allah is greater than everything and bigger than all creation. The Throne does not carry Him out of its own strength or power. Nor do those who carry the Throne hold it up with their own strength or firmness. Rather, they carry it by His power, will, and support. Without this, they would not be able to carry it.
It has reached us that when the bearers of the Throne first carried it, and the Almighty was above it in His honour and majesty, they weakened, fell to their knees, and could not bear its weight until they were taught to say: “La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah” (There is no power and no strength except with Allah). Only then were they able to carry it with Allah’s power and will. If it were not for that, the Throne would not be able to hold itself up, nor would its bearers, nor the heavens and the earth, nor those in them.
If He had willed, He could have settled upon the back of a mosquito, and it would have held Him up by His power and His Lordship’s kindness.
So what about a great Throne that is bigger than the seven heavens and the seven earths?
How can you deny this, arrogant one, while you claim that Allah is in the earth in all places, and the earth is much smaller and narrower than the Throne? How can the earth hold Him in your claim, but the Throne, which is greater and wider, cannot? Apply this measure that you brought up about the size of the Throne and its largeness or smallness to yourself and your companions in regard to the earth and its smallness so that you realise your ignorance and become aware of how your own words turn against you.
‘Abd Allah ibn Salih told us, saying: “Mu‘awiyah ibn Salih told me that the first thing Allah created, while His Throne was upon the water, was the bearers of His Throne. They said: ‘Our Lord, why did You create us?’ He said: ‘I created you to carry My Throne.’ They said: ‘Our Lord, who can bear the weight of Your Throne along with Your greatness, majesty, and reverence?’ He said: ‘I created you for that purpose.’ They asked repeatedly: ‘Our Lord, who can bear the weight of Your Throne along with Your greatness, majesty, and reverence?’ He told them: ‘Say: La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.’ They said it, and so they were able to carry the Throne by Allah’s power.”
O opponent! Do you not understand that the bearers of the Throne did not carry it and what is upon it by their own strength and firmness, but only by Allah’s power and support?
We have explained to you what you were ignorant of regarding the Throne with clear proofs from the Book of Allah.
Naqd Uthman ad-Darimi ala al-Marisi al-Jahmi Pg 250-253
